Moving Tips: Getting Ready for the New Owners

About Me

My first house needed a lot of work before I could move in. Nothing was structurally wrong with the place. What was wrong is that I had to clean everything inside and out before moving my stuff in. Ever since, I've made it a point to make sure every home I leave is ready for the next guy to move in.
After I get the last of my stuff out of the old place, I go into cleaning mode. That includes mopping the floors, washing the windows, and hiring a carpet cleaning service to steam clean all the rugs. Outside, I'll have one of the local lawn care services mowing the lawn and trimming the shrubs.
Try my tips for getting the place ready for the next guy. Pay it forward, and watch karma come around. The job will be done in no time and you can start working on getting the new place in order.

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Best Counter Materials For High-Use Kitchens

Your home kitchen might not be a full-scale restaurant, but it can feel like it on a busy night. All of that chopping, sliding and spilling can take a toll on your counters if they aren't made of a durable material. If you are planning a kitchen remodel in the near future, consider installing counters made of one of these low-maintenance yet durable materials.

Granite

The award for the most durable luxury material goes to granite. These counters offer an elegant look similar to marble without marble's tendency to stain, scratch or scorch. Granite is available in a wide variety of colors and quality sellers allow buyers to look at the actual slab of stone their counter will come from to see the actual color in person.

While granite is fairly low maintenance, it does need to have a new sealer applied at least once a year. But even concrete counters need regular waxing, so a small amount of upkeep isn't a deal-breaker for most owners. Granite is one of the more expensive counter options around, but also timelessly elegant so the investment is worth the cost if it fits within your budget.

Engineered Stone / Quartz

The counters often billed as quartz aren't made entirely of quartz. At least 10% comes from other composite materials. That's why these counters are also called engineered stone. This has the look of natural stone with increased durability against the wear and tear of cooking including scratches and stains. Engineered stone also doesn't require a sealer the way granite does.

Engineered stone is available in a wide range of colors and can include embedded glass fragments for a subtle amount of depth and sparkle. The main downside is that the material can be easily scorched if you accidentally set a hot pan down on its surface. And that scorch mark can be hard or impossible to remove. That might not be a big deal if you never set hot pans on your counters.

Bamboo Composite

Wood counter lovers often drift towards butcher block. But butcher block requires constant maintenance and is vulnerable to scratches, stains, heat damage and just about any other use damage that exists. A more durable alternative is bamboo, which is technically a composite of bamboo and paper. These counters use eco-friendly material and offer the look of wood without all of the upkeep drama of butcher's block.

The cost is fairly low and on par with mid-range laminate. But bamboo counters don't come in a wide variety of colors, so if you have your heart set on an off-beat color, look elsewhere. Talk to places like GranBrazil Inc for more information.